B-Sides: Forgotten gems, a lost art?

There’s often 2 sides to every story, no more so than in the case of records and their B-Sides.

As we move ever further into the age of digital downloads, it is becoming increasingly apparent that the once fruitful EP format made of A & B-Sides that include multiple songs, is slowly becoming redundant. The fact that the official compilers of the UK Charts have been counting and listing UK Single Downloads as a source of data for the overall Top 40 for quite some time, highlights the importance the individual unit has come to play in the perceived “success” of popular music, and how it is being consumed.

Whilst we are far from heralding it’s death and penning an obituary, it’s certainly an interesting point for discussion: not to mention a whole avenue for discovery, hence the idea for a regular feature. Imagine for one second, a world in which a myriad of singles are released, get known for a particular song – leaving their finely dressed siblings to stand outside in the cold and cry (I’m sure there’s a very bad dad joke in their somewhere). But ask yourself, just how often do you remember an EP for a particular track, yet remain completely ignorant as to what lies in waiting on the other side…

Guilty as charged?

Make no mistake, there’s often a reason why the world and their dog never paid a moment’s thought to this issue for quite a simple reason – those other titles didn’t quite appeal or weren’t memorable. Either way, here’s a selection-of-six for you to peruse at your leisure and listening pleasure, to get the ball rolling: